ABORTION FOES MARCH

Marching with evangelical purpose -- but little sense that their convictions would quickly become law -- thousands of abortion foes braved the cold and snow Monday to rally against Roe vs. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court decision that validated a woman's right to have an abortion.

"It's so obvious to us, our belief in the rights of the unborn," said Barbara Parker, who came to Washington from St. Joseph, Ind., with her three children and her husband, Geoffrey. "We are hoping to change things."

In their first big gathering since Republicans retained the White House and made gains in the House and the Senate, abortion opponents expressed only vague hope that they had the political muscle to enact measures -- such as mandatory notification of parents when teens seek an abortion -- they have long sought.

But President Bush gave them little reason to hope that the electoral gains would lead to quick legislative fixes. In a telephone call from Camp David broadcast to the rally over loudspeakers, Bush said that while "we're making progress in Washington ... a culture of life cannot be sustained solely by changing laws. We need most of all to change hearts."

Ever since the Supreme Court declared on Jan. 22, 1973, that a constitutional right to privacy protected a woman's decision to have an abortion, abortion foes have gathered around the anniversary of that ruling to protest.

"The America of our dreams, where every child is welcomed in life and protected in law, may still be some ways away," Bush said. "But even from the far side of the river ... we can see its glimmerings."

Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., one of the most outspoken abortion foes in Congress, told the rally, "The end of abortion on demand has started in America. In its place, a spring of life has begun." And Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, urged demonstrations to "never, ever back up" and to keep marching "until we celebrate the end of Roe v. Wade."

Both sides in the debate are girding for confrontation on the prospect of Supreme Court vacancies.

Nancy Keenan, president of NARAL Pro-Choice America, warned that if Bush tried to "pack the Supreme Court with out-of-touch far-right judges who want to take away our rights, he's going to hear from [the] pro-choice majority loud and clear."

"If Senate Democrats continue to obstruct judicial nominees at the behest of liberal pressure groups, they do so at their collective political peril," said Douglas Johnson, legislative director of the National Right to Life Committee.